Category: Best Places to Retire

There are basically some things to consider when you are about to retire, one of which is the best place to retire. Check the place and make sure that all of the amenities that you need in order to sustain a comfortable life are present.

Also another primary thing to check is the security of the place; you can ask some locals who eventually stayed in the place for a long time to give you information about the security of the place.

Visit the location more than once. You will never get to hold of the atmosphere if you only visit once, most likely you have to visit the place at least 3 or more times before deciding to move in.

Also check the cities, provinces and metropolitan areas to decide on where to live. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to live there by just pinpointing on the map where to lure.

Learn more of the area by researching, browsing the web, reading comments and suggestions from blogs, travel and leisure guides and other useful resources that will make you up to date and informed of the place.

Image via Wikipedia

If your reason for moving to another place for retirement is to pursue a hobby, then it is a good thing to consider but it should not be the only thing to consider because you are going to live there in the place and your not there for just a 3 day vacation. Be careful in selecting the place to move in because if you move in, you might lose some of the things that you have at least enjoyed in your old neighborhood, or the old place where you live is a proximal place for your relatives for gatherings and special events.

These are only few of the things you should consider when you want to move in another place to retire. It takes real time and consideration for this decision before finalizing it. Here are some places that are considered like Arizona, Florida, Pennsylvania and Kansas.

Choosing the best retirement community is one of the most important decisions you will make. There are some very relevant things you need to consider before you choose your new residence.

Here are five important things to look for when shopping around for a retirement community:

1. Environment

When asking yourself what environment you would prefer to live in, you need to determine the impact of climate, access to transport and resources, local culture and the type of home and immediate surroundings. You should also inquire about the number of security personnel that are on patrol 24 hours a day.

2. Cost

Aside from the buy in cost of your retirement home you will also be charged for the community amenities. You need to be clear about what the ongoing fees are as well as any specific charges for additional services or programs. Make sure you understand what services the base price includes, and if fixed costs are set to increase annually, then the contract should state the percentage at which the increases will be calculated.

3. Amenities

The best retirement community will give residents access to a range of facilities like a swimming pool, spa, tennis court, golf course, and games room as well as to different services.

4. Housing

Would you prefer to live in a stand alone house or a small apartment? Different retirement villages offer different types of retirement homes and you need to be clear on what sort of housing you would prefer. If you havent lived in an apartment before, choosing to do so in retirement could be a mistake as you will hear sounds through walls and ceilings that you are unused to.

5. Services

Even if you’re in good health, consider choosing a retirement community that has an on call medical and nursing support as well as health care services such as bathing assistance and medication reminders.
Does the facility maintain the grounds around your accommodation or do you have to do it? If they maintain the lawns and gardens will they allow you to do as much maintenance personally as you wish?

If you ask the right questions, you will be able to obtain the necessary information to choose a retirement community you can enjoy for many years to come and avoid the many possible pitfalls innocent retirees can stumble into.

With the sub-prime mortgage affecting homeowners and home sales, it may or may not be a good time to buy a home. However, when the housing market begins to level off, you may wish to consider the following cities that are cited as the best places to buy a home to retire:

* Wichita, Kansas. With a median home price of $157,000, this city has been listed as one of the most affordable cities to buy a home.

* Omaha, Nebraska. With home sales averaging $226,000, this city has a low unemployment rate.

* Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. This city offers homes for $226,000 as well, and is located east of Philadelphia. Rich in history and cultural diversity, this may be an excellent choice. Moreover, its about four hours from New York City.

* Madison, Wisconsin. With a price range of $266,000, Madison has a beautiful landscape and is a friendly city. With its many museums, among them the Frank Lloyd Wright Museum, this is one place you can truly call home.

* San Antonio, Texas. This city has home sales averaging $172,000. It is filled with historic sites such as the Alamo, and the people here are warm and friendly as well.

* Indianapolis, Indiana. Median home prices average $166,000. Home to the well-known pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, Indianapolis is also home to the Indy 500, the National Football Leagues Colts, and has a diverse culture as well.

* Pittsburgh, Pa. The home prices here average $149,000. It is most affordable for retirees. Home to the Pittsburgh Steelers, it is known for its friendly people and holds its values and traditions close to the heart. This is a great city for families.

* Dallas, Texas. At a median price of $205,000, Dallas has the most jobs and housing of all the cities listed.

* Tulsa, Oklahoma. For $158,000, you can buy a fantastic home in Tulsa. It has a booming economy due to the energy industry, and is a beautiful place to live with its parks, historic sites, and gardens. Touted as a great place to raise a family, Tulsa is very affordable in todays housing market.

If you are considering buying a home that is in foreclosure, take some time and research this method. Buying a home in foreclosure can create more problems than necessary. As stated earlier, it may be a good idea to give the housing market time to settle down. In the meanwhile, you can research the aforementioned cities in depth to determine if they are right for you and your family.

Its extensive coastlines include the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Mexico has nice and warm people, unique food, art and archeology, pyramids, museums, Haciendas, 6,000 miles of shoreline, superb architecture and 21 century cities, weather from snow mountains in the Sierras, to rainy jungles in the Southeast and desert in the Northwest, lots of golf courses throughout the country, excellent fishing, world top destinations like Acapulco, Cancun, Cozumel, Los Cabos, and Patzcuaro. Mexico is ranked 7th major destination for foreigner visitors, according to WTO.

Sounds good so far.

What about the sights of Mexico?

Here’s a short video showing some of the scenery around Mexico:

## showyoutube hRUZVoM1ewM 425 350 ##

What about working in Mexico?

Working may require a work visa, which is difficult to get if you just want to freelance for a short time.

Many important headquarters are located throughout the main cities of Mexico. Mexican top corporations like Televisa, Bimbo, Cemex, Telmex, Vitro, are often willing to hire professionals who speak English as their native language as most of the business scene is developed with North American corporations.

An excellent way to get to know and understand more of the country is to do some voluntary work. There are several organizations such as Travel to Teach that arrange work for international volunteers in Mexico and other countries in the region.

Native English speakers can pick up work, as English teachers. The upside is that English speakers with no knowledge of Spanish are sought after, because they will force their students to practice English. The downside is that salaries are somewhat low.

What about money in Mexico?

The currency of Mexico is the peso (MXN). The symbol for pesos is the same as for US dollars, which can be slightly confusing. Prices in dollars (in tourist areas) are labeled “US$” or sport an S with a double stroke. As of May 2008 the exchange rate hovers around $10.20 MXN to $1.00 USD.

US dollars are widely accepted in the far north and in tourist locales elsewhere. Euros are generally not accepted by merchants, and even banks headquartered in Europe may refuse to accept euros for exchange.

Best place to convert USD to pesos is the supermarket. At Pemex gas stations, attendants seem to be private enterprise minded. They will give you 500 pesos of gas and charge you $50 (which is 10.00 mexican to 1.00 dollar). And will readily convert 500 pesos to dollars by multiplying by .105 rather than dividing by 10.5 and thus supplement their hourly wage. Attendants carry a wad of cash and make their own change. While many Pemex stations accept credit cards, especially in locations that have heavy tourist traffic, some do not; travelers who intend to pay by credit card should ask the attendant if the card is accepted before pumping begins.

What about the water in Mexico?

Mexico is so notorious for traveler’s diarrhea that it is often called “Montezuma’s Revenge” (Venganza de Moctezuma). The reason for this is not so much the spicy food but the contamination of the water supply in some of the poorer zones in Mexico. In most of the small towns that are less industrialized, only the poorest Mexicans will drink tap water. The best policy is to only drink bottled or purified water, both of which are readily available. Just like in the USA, in most major Mexican cities the water is purified at the cities’ water company. In most restaurants in these poor zones, the only water served comes from large jugs of purified water. If you get sick visit your local clinic as soon as possible. There is medicine available that will counter the bacteria.

If you’re looking for some place cheap to retire, look no further than south of the border – MEXICO.

It is said that anyone can retire in luxury in Mexico and that you can live better than you do now.

Who wouldn’t want that?

The cost of living is so much lower in Mexico than it is here in the US.

With the rising cost of everything these days, lower prices would be a welcome relief.

But, moving and retiring to Mexico is not that easy.

Well, it is if you know what you’re doing and where to go. You can learn the hard way about retiring to Mexico or you can learn the easy way by learning from people who have done it already.

There are 3 guides on how to retire in Mexico:

The first one has an unusual title: Mexico, the trick is living here. It is written by a woman named Julia who has compiled a comprehensive volume about all you need to know about living and retiring in Mexico. The guide has several testimonials about how the guide has helped them. Read more…

This one talks about improving your standard of living by moving to Mexico. This guide promises to teach you about how to retire now, on less, and get more out of life. Read more…

Check out any of the guides if you are interested in learning more about living in Mexico and what to look out for and be aware of. You don’t want to be caught in a Mexican jail because you weren’t aware of some little tip that’s included in one of these guides.

For a lot of people, retirement is a very liberating phase. It marks the end (for most, anyway) of ones professional life. He could simply live on his retirement pay as well as his pension, and opt to relocate to beautiful places to enjoy his work-free life. Many baby boomers choose beachfront lodgings. Some baby boomers relocate to exotic places where grand adventures await. There are a number of baby boomers who choose places where business is booming so that they could establish their own. But what does the passionate golfer do immediately after retirement? Alas he seeks out a place where the best golf courses can be found! Such place he would consider as paradise!

There are many places that can be considered as golfing heaven. Lets take a look at some of these countries that most people actually fail to consider, but are nonetheless perfect destinations for the avid golfer.

* New Zealand. With cascading hills of pristine beauty, perfect weather most of the year, a climate thats never too hot and never too cold, and wide expanse of open areas New Zealand does look like one gigantic golf course! Pick a spot, any spot, in this lovely country, and for as long as you have a ball and your irons at hand, you could easily start a game of golf. Other considerations are also favorable for the baby boomer. Relatively low cost of living, an abundance of post-retirement opportunities, a laidback environment, and world class amenities make New Zealand one of the most excellent destinations for any retiree, more so the golfing aficionado!

* Portugal. If you want to experience a taste of the old world to go with your countless hours of golf, then Portugal is the place to be. They have world class golf courses which are among the most challenging greens in the world. They would take years to master, and since youll be spending those years work-free, you have all the time in the world to indulge in what these golf courses have to offer. Living in Portugal would give you the feeling that youre living in the 30s. Its this old world flavor that gives the place its unique charms. Indeed, Portugal is an unconventional destination. But it is extraordinary enough to give you a one-of-a-kind experience.

* Florida. The weather, the low applicable tax rates, the beautiful beaches, the post-retirement earning opportunities these things make Florida a favorite destination for baby boomers the world over. But with Naples, Punta Gorda, Bay Hill, the Southern Dunes, the Mystic Dunes and the New Course at Grand Cypress ranking as some of the finest golf courses in the world, Florida becomes a very lucrative option indeed for the golf enthusiast!

* Hawaii. Though he cost of living in the island of Hawaii may be a little higher than the other states in the US, there is no denying the tropical appeal that this place possesses which many people have come to label as paradise on earth. Its the perfect vacation spot, and there is no reason why it cant be the perfect retirement destination for any baby boomer. But were talking about the golf enthusiast, and immediately, the names Poipu Bay, Wailea, Kaanapali Tournament Courses, Koolau, Kona Country Club and Mauna Kea come to mind. All of these are highly rated golf courses with sceneries and a weather to die for! Paradise on earth, they say? Hawaii is heaven for any golf aficionado!

If youre planning your retirement destination with a great golfing experience in mind, then the places we have discussed above are your best bets for the time of your life. Do consider them, and enjoy your work-free years. You have earned it! Enjoy!

If you live in the US and are getting ready to retire, you may not want to stay in the US for your retirement. And that’s understandable.

But not every country is friendly towards Americans and that is understandable too. So if you want to get away and find a location overseas then check out the US State Department’s own website for more information about countries all over the world.

It has an A-Z listing of all the countries but the best section that you’re going to want to visit over and over again is the background notes. It has notes about each country.

“These publications include facts about the land, people, history, government, political conditions, economy, and foreign relations of independent states, some dependencies, and areas of special sovereignty.”

So check it out when you want to learn more about the best countries to live in.

-Adam

UPDATE: You can get free “Best Country to Live and Retire Reports here: